Dr. Brian Goldman

Dr. Brian Goldman is a doctor who thinks like a patient. Dr. Goldman is the best-selling author of The Night Shift and The Secret Language of Doctors. He also hosts CBC’s White Coat, Black Art and House Doctor.

Presentations

Whistleblowers in Health CareIf we’re going to make health care safer for patients, it pays to have a few more whistleblowers. You probably have you own opinion about whether people like Edward Snowden are heroes for exposing government wrongdoing or traitors for threatening national security. Dr. Goldman believes people like Edward Snowden are heroes for exposing government wrongdoing or traitors for threatening national security.Surprisingly, whistleblowers are quite unusual in health care. Using excerpts of interviews from his radio program White Coat, Black Art, Dr. Brian Goldman explores the need for whistleblowers in health care and examines the reasons why there are so few of them. He brings examples of hospital whistleblowers and what happened to them when they spoke up. He points to the United Kingdom as a shining example of a country that is making health care safer by turning whistleblowing into a virtue.

The Secret Language of DoctorsDoctors and other health professionals have invented thousands of words, phrases and acronyms that they use to describe patients, everyday situations and colleagues they wish they didn’t have to deal with. Reasons for inventing slang words can create a bond of shared anger or misery among colleagues. Or it can prevent eavesdropping outsiders from understanding what you’re talking about. Slang or argot that is well constructed can be said along hospital corridors and elevators without patients and family members being the wiser.

Irreverent, funny and often biting, veteran medical culture watcher Dr. Brian Goldman gives the telling examples of medical slang, where they come from, and what they reveal about the culture of modern medicine.

Will Someone Please Invent An App for That?Twenty-first century health care is advanced and cutting edge. At the same time, I think health computing and information technology can be called primitive and user-unfriendly. The same people who gave us surgeons who can transplant faces and hands make health professionals handwrite their notes and make patients use a phone to book appointments and stay in touch with the doctor. Sometimes, it takes someone from outside the world of medicine to show us a better way. Dr. Brian Goldman makes the case that health needs a big disruptive shake-up in health care computing. Using the hackathon approach, Goldman shows how even the most technophobe doctors and nurses can team up with up-and-coming software engineers to invent cutting edge medical apps. He gives examples of software apps that are making things better for health professionals and patients alike.

Empathy, ShmempathyHealth care is more advanced than ever. Unfortunately, each technological advance takes health professionals further and further away from empathizing with patients. Drawing on examples from his radio show White Coat, Black Art, and his experience as the son of aging parents who were frequent users of modern health care, Goldman talks about the growing lack of empathy in health care, the causes, the impact, and how to put care back into health care.

Patient EngagementUntil recently, at most Canadian hospitals, they seldom paid any attention to the patient point of view. It’s common among health professionals to think the opinions of patients aren’t worth getting because patients don’t know medicine. Smart hospitals are taking patient complaints and are using them to make health care delivery better. And, they’re involving current and former patients and their families in every aspect of hospital life: from interviewing potential new hires to changing the way the hospital delivers health care. Dr. Brian Goldman explores the problems in health care that can be solved with more input from patients.

Awards

We can't thank you enough for your contribution to the evening. More importantly, I thought it very kind of you to be so generous with your time spent with the staff and supporters of the event. The gift of your books was very thoughtful. The CCS staff were overwhelmed by the response from the audience to the campaign ask. It was far beyond their expectations.

- 145 Live Solutions

The event with Brian Goldman surpassed all our expectations. Dr. Goldman was informative and entertaining. I really think that Dr. Goldman's smooth engagement with the panel and with the audience presented some new insights for him as well.

- George Street United Church

Dr. Goldman was a huge hit! Folks were over the moon with his talk - both the content and the manner in which he delivered his message. All the evaluations noted that he set the tone for the conference - which was very positive and congratulated us on selecting such a fine speaker.

- Nova Scotia Community College

His presentation was excellent and he put real effort into personalizing the content. He struck an excellent balance between content and entertainment. We'd be thrilled to have him again.

- Friends of Medicare

Dr. Goldman was well received. He even took the time to sign the books that were included in our arrangement which has made for a great stewardship piece for our major sponsors. We are thoroughly pleased.

- Events Specialist, The Lung Association

Brian is always fantastic. He was helpful and accommodating to work with. Great all around.

- Manager, Community Engagement and Information Technology, The Change Foundation

Books

Summary Profile

Doctors make mistakes. Dr. Brian Goldman wants to talk about that with your audience. His jaw-dropping and honest TED talk “Doctors Make Mistakes. Can we talk about that?” has been seen over one million times and for good reason. People love to hear the inside scoop about health care from doctors who don’t pull punches.

He’s part-Dr. Oz, part-Ralph Nader and all-patient friendly.

Dr. Brian Goldman is one of Canada’s most trusted voices in medicine, a doctor who thinks like a patient.

He makes complex medical issues digestible for audiences on radio, television and on the speaking circuit. He personalizes medicine and the human frailties of his profession.

Dr. Goldman has worked as a health reporter for The National, CBC Television’s flagship news program, and for CBC-TV’s The Health Show. As well, he served as senior production executive during the launch year of Discovery Health Channel, Canada’s only 24-hour channel devoted to health programming.

His CBC Radio show, the “house doctor”, is syndicated in 20 markets across Canada. Dr. Goldman hosts CBC Radio One’s White Coat, Black Art, where he takes listeners behind the scenes of medical offices.

He discusses health care topics ranging from queue-jumping to confronting medical errors and dealing with them. He is not afraid to address tough or controversial issues head on in a comprehensive way. Also unafraid to use his own medical mistakes for examples on how doctors can improve.

In the trenches for more than 20 years, Dr. Goldman has been and continues to be a respected emergency physician at Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto.

Dr. Goldman has written two books, The Night Shift – Real Life in the Heart of the ER and The Secret Language of Doctors.

Dr. Goldman’s style on stage is earnest, heartfelt and sincere. He has a passion for compassion.